egagne219's Journal

Despite the fact that it is still winter, today was very warm and sunny (in the forties). Because of this, we saw different birds exhibiting different winter and spring behaviors.
In terms of winter behavior, the cedar waxwings we saw were flocked together in one tree. This may be advantageous for cooperative feeding and foraging, and explains why they still may be flocking together. The rock pigeons also appeared to be relatively calm together and did not exhibit any agonistic behavior; that kind of behavior would indicate the beginning of finding territories and mates. In the house sparrows and european starlings we noticed much more territorial behavior, as it appeared they were seeking out urban spots for nests on top of telephone wires and in chimneys. They were also more likely to be found alone, chasing around other males, and singing more frequently. This indicates spring behavior, as they prepare for the breeding season by establishing territory and making themselves known to other males and females in the area. In terms of budgeting their time, they seemed more active, engaging in agonistic behavior and searching for food. This is indicative of spring behavior, as in winter it would be more likely that they would conserve their energy.
In observing the snags in the area, I noticed that the larger trees had many smaller holes, while the smaller trees had more large holes and cavities. This could be due to the accessibility of insects and cover in these snags. I noticed that the white-breasted nuthatches and downy woodpeckers were most interested in the snags. They stayed in the same general area for longer periods at a time, searching and pecking on the snags for insects. One of the downy woodpeckers even chased a white-breasted nuthatch away from a snag at one point.

On March 9, 2020, I walked on the Head's Pond trail in Hooksett, NH from about 4:45 pm until 6:30 pm. The weather was warm in the high 50s and the sky was relatively clear and sunny.

The visual and auditory cues birds use to communicate within and between species can tell us a lot about what they are trying to communicate. For example, I'll compare the plumage of the Mallard I saw to the plumage of the Black-capped Chickadee I saw. The Mallard had a brightly colored green head, which was very apparent and gave away his location so we could easily spot him. The strong sexual dimorphism of the green head in this species indicates not only the sex of the bird, but perhaps the fitness of the male Mallard. In terms of behavior, the Mallard was resting with his bill tucked into his wing, as there were no females present in its' vicinity to try and court. Another possible reason the Mallard was resting, is that it was not quite breeding season yet at this time and it had not yet decided to seek out a mate. In the case of the Black-capped Chickadee, its' plumage is more discrete, not sexually dimorphic, but still distinctive. Perhaps this more discrete plumage allows it to blend in more easily with its' environment and avoid predation, while also serving as a measurement of fitness when breeding. The Black-capped Chickadees seemed to rely more on audio cues to communicate with the birds around them, as the sun began to set the frequency of their calls increased dramatically so as to communicate who was around them.

I tried to practice some "spishing" but it did not prove much success for me. I do understand why it would normally though, as the presence of chickadees could suggest viable habitat and resources. Chickadee calls also tend to be for alarms, so other birds may come when a chickadee calls to establish the degree of threat or predation nearby.